After a week of fall temperatures (one week BEFORE fall), we are back in the heat and humidity of a typical summer day even though we are now officially in the fall season. On a particularly humid night, I opened the back door of my house to see these two little cuties hanging out. They were sitting on a chair directly underneath the porch light, taking advantage of the light attracting a bunch of moths and other flying insects. I am sure they … [Read more...]
Dragonflies: Nature’s Beautiful but Deadly Insect Predators
With a flash of color and blur of movement, dragonflies zip through the air, often catching another insect in mid-flight. Their amazing flying abilities, those large eyes, and fragile wings have always fascinated me. These amazing insects are often brightly colored, though some are more colored to blend in with their surroundings. This blue/green dragonfly was resting near a lake in Vicksburg, Mississippi. He was so beautiful I just had to … [Read more...]
A Weekend Surprise: Butterfly Hatching
The Friday night air had hints of fall weather to come and Saturday morning, I opened the windows to my house, letting the fresh breeze in. I love being able to open my windows and let the fresh air blow through the house. This weekend was full of cool breezes and sunny weather. It was a perfect glimpse of the fall weather to come and a great time to get outdoors. We Mississippians give up being outdoors for much of August. We just can't stand … [Read more...]
How to Attract and Feed Eastern Black Swallowtail Butterflies
One of the greatest joys I get out of my garden is watching the insects and wildlife that is attracted to the flowers and plants. I know that some of my plants will be consumed by these critters, but I’m willing to share. This week, I stumbled across this little black swallowtail caterpillar (Papilio polyxenes) munching in my carrot patch. These little guys have such a bright green color and the yellow and black spots on them seem to hint at … [Read more...]
Why Keep a Dead Tree In Your Yard?
As I was heading out to work this morning, I looked up at the large pecan tree in the backyard and saw both the male and female wood duck who have been hanging around our yard for a few weeks. The male was flying off and the female was flying into a cavity in one of the large branches of the tree. This large branch has a nice cavity in it, perfect for nesting animals. It looks like we're going to have some ducklings in the yard this … [Read more...]
When Do You Put Out Your Hummingbird Feeders in Spring
The first hummingbirds start migrating northward in early spring, showing up in southern Texas, Louisiana, and northern Florida in late February and the first week of March. It takes a little while longer for them to start showing up in my garden, but they usually show up just when the red buckeyes are in full bloom. This tends to be around mid- to late-March. This is when I’ll hang my hummingbird feeders in my garden. There is a great … [Read more...]
Warm December Temps Bring Out the Bees
Winter in Mississippi is notoriously interesting. Some days we have really cold weather and then 24 hours later, the temperature changes by 20 degrees. This was the case this year. In the previous weeks, we had lows in the 20's and highs in the 30's. It was downright cold for us southerners. Then Christmas week rolls around and our temperatures get into the mid- to high-60's. I enjoyed every minute of it. So do the insects and frogs! When … [Read more...]
How to Keep Ants Out of Your Hummingbird Feeder
You know the struggle. You find the perfect place for your hummingbird feeder, you know the one, right outside the kitchen window, and the next time you look, there are ants on, in, and around your hummingbird feeder. Once they are inside the feeder, they will die and cause mold and fungus to grow in the food. It's not healthy for the birds and besides, who wants to keep killing ants? Ants have to find a way to crawl on to the feeder in the … [Read more...]
Be Careful What You Bring Indoors
The air is getting crisper and the temperatures are dropping. It's getting close to the time to bring your plants indoors for the winter. I have a lot of potted plants, so each year, I have to pick and choose the ones that I am going to try to save and those that I will leave outside. Otherwise, it gets to be a jungle in my house! Hitchhikers on my plants I am rooting some cuttings of a snake plant and for the last few months they have been … [Read more...]
Praying Mantis: The Garden Carnivore
I was opening the door to the storage space under my house to get the lawn mower when my hand brushed across something, and it moved. I sure did jump and so did it! When I looked at the ground, I found a brown praying mantis looking back up to me in what I perceived as a highly offended manner. Luckily, I had not crushed this insect, but to be honest, I do not like to touch them. I think it has to do with their size and their carnivorous diet. … [Read more...]
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